Between friends
by brocko18
Summary: KIBASHIKA romance! high school fic. characters are regular people, not shinobi, and have toned down personalities. Gaara doesn't have a bloodlust, etc. just basically the story of their relationship
1. Recognition

My very first serious fanfic submitted to It's a KibaShika romance, set in high school with some gaakiba hints (but not subtle ones). They're not shinobi though. It's just a bunch of kids in high school, but they just HAPPEN to be Naruto characters. Just so you know, I try to use more descriptions, rather than dialogue so if you don't like it, you don't gotta read it. So yeah, that's all I have to say, except for this little annoying disclaimer thingie-

I NO OWN, YOU NO SUE Well, here it goes! Smile spreads across face the size of a watermelon

**Chapter 1**

The late bell for first period rang, and the students all scurried off to class. The shuffle of feet echoed through the empty hallway, and dust that had settled was now drifting through the air, becoming visible in the light rays that beamed through the skylights. There was now complete silence in the desolate, lonely high school hallway of Konoha high.

This silence could only be broken by muffled noises coming from beyond the classrooms. The source of these sounds was the desperate attempt of Kiba Inuzuka trying to not be terribly late for class. He sprinted down the smooth pathway toward his English classroom, his hood jostling as he took each step. Akamaru could barely keep his grip on Kiba's soft shoulder.

The boy raced toward his destination, which was now in sight. The door came closer and closer, and grew larger and larger, until Kiba could at last wrap his hand around the metal handle. He turned it, and practically threw himself into the classroom. All eyes were on him, as he stood halfway through the door momentarily. The silver-haired teacher, Hatake Kakashi, glanced over from his lesson at the panting boy now standing in his doorway.

"So good of you to join us Kiba," Kakashi now said. Kiba stared blankly at him for a second before responding, "Oh, uh," he muttered. "Sorry about that," he apologized as he put his right hand behind his head, embarrassed. With a slight hesitation, he sat down in the only seat available, which was between Sasuke and Shikamaru. Sasuke had his head in his hand and was staring absentmindedly out the clear, glass window. Shikamaru appeared equally unenthuzed by Kakashi's monotonous lecture.

Kiba set down his bookbag next to his student-sized desk and pulled out his black, spiral notebook labeled "English", and opened it to a clean page. He noticed Shikamaru had nothing on his desk, and wondered why for a moment. Kakashi had been lecturing for a few minutes now, but Kiba only just noticed.

Kakashi suddenly asked a question concerning the novel they were reading, The Secret hidden in the leaves, "Shikamaru, what would you say is the main plot in this work of literature?" Shikamaru looked up, "Well, I would have to say it must be the eclectic bunch of clues that the author distributes throughout various sections of the novel that the protagonists must discover. They are then forced to find the truth to the secret that everyone in Konoha has been pondering in their minds for some time." Kakashi looked almost shocked at the response given by the usual I-Don't-Give-A-Crap Shikamaru. "Well done Shikamaru."

"Whatever…" Shika said. Kiba glanced up from notetaking to look over at Shikamaru and admired him for a moment. "I never realized how smart he is," he thought to himself.

* * *

Kiba was staring off into nothing now as someone was reading aloud from the novel. His mind wasn't thinking about anything, and he could barely concentrate on the soporific class. He just simply stared, and his world began to slowly drift away from him. Everything around him started to blur together and his eyelids grew heavy.

_Ring! _Kiba jolted back to reality and his world came into focus again. The class was getting up and exiting the room. Kiba was stunned for a moment, but realized what was going on, so he packed up his things and walked toward the door. Shikamaru was leaving directly behind Temari and Ino, who were talking and giggling as they clutched their books tightly.

Kiba watched Shikamaru put his hands behind his head and give a big sigh as he walked out the door. Kiba watched him intently, but Akamaru gave a small bark, and snapped him out of it.

"Huh?" Kiba said. "No, I don't like him," he sounded annoyed with Akamaru. Kiba left the room thinking about the class. He couldn't seem to be able to push the onyx-haired boy from his mind. He wondered why he was even thinking about Shika, when he walked out into the bustling hallway, and was greeted by his friend Gaara. Gaara was wearing a brown tee shirt with the Japanese symbol for love printed on it.

"Hey," Gaara said in a dull tone.

"What's up Gaara?" Kiba responded. Gaara gave him an incredulous look.

"What do you think? My last class was so boring, so I think I'm gonna head out for a few periods. Wanna come?"

Kiba pondered the idea for a moment, and decided to go along. He figured that missing a few periods of school couldn't hurt. They both snuck off to the bathroom after Kiba bent over at the water fountain for a quick drink. They walked together to the blue door labeled "boys", and hid inside the bathroom to wait for the sound of the bell.

Once they heard a ring echo through the halls, Gaara and Kiba peered out of the door, and shot glances down either end of the hall. It was just as it was after the first bell- lonely and silent. So they snuck out quietly and headed for the front doors. Kiba look slightly nervous, as they were about to leave the school without permission. Gaara appeared cool and smooth, as if he had done this before, which he had many times.

* * *

There was a park right near their school. It was a balmy day, and a light breeze was rustling the leaves on the deciduous trees. A small dirt path cut through the woods leading to the park. It led to a wide field with park benches scattered sporadically throughout.

They walked side by side through the dense trees leading to the field, making no noise, whatsoever. Kiba was looking up at the trees as he walked along. Akamaru was tired, so he decided to curl up and sleep in Kiba's hood.

They treaded nearer and nearer to the field, and as they approached it, it opened up to them, showing them its small playground for children, and vast, grassy areas. The two stepped out onto it, and continued along their route, but not along the path, which stretched no further than the edge of the forest.

Their destination was the bus stop at the other end of the field, which yielded a small blue bench. They made their way to it, avoiding stray trees that littered the area. Once they arrived at their destination, they checked the time on Gaara's watch, which looked oddly unfamiliar to Kiba.

"Hey, that's a nice watch," Kiba said.

"Thanks. I stole it from my older brother," Gaara replied. It was 9:14. They would have to wait for 15 minutes before the next bus came to pick them up. Gaara cursed under his breath for not getting there sooner. He sighed and slumped down onto the bench. Kiba didn't seem to care about having to wait.

"It's only 15 minutes, but remember Gaara, I want to get back by fifth period gym class. We're playing floor hockey, and I don't want miss that."

Gaara appeared not to care.

"Whatever," he simply replied as he pulled out his iPod. Kiba had an inquisitive look on his face.

"So where are we going, anyway?" he asked, but received no reply from the crimson haired teen.

"How about we go to Friendly's and get something to eat?" He stared intently at Gaara, who still gave no response.

"OK, so Friendly's it is." An awkward silence hung in the air. The only thing audible was the small beat of punk music coming from Gaara's iPod. Kiba began to pet the sleeping pup in his hood. He looked up at Gaara who had his eyes closed, and was leaning his head against the back of the bench.

"Hey, Gaara?" Kiba asked with an introverted tone in his voice. Gaara opened his eyes to look over at Kiba, who appeared somewhat timid.

"What happened between us?" Kiba said shyly. Gaara was silent for a few moments while he ran the thought through his mind.

"There was just no connection," he said. The words seemed to just dance off his tongue, and reverberate in Kiba's head.

"But I am glad," he continued, "that we decided to still be friends at least." This seemed to lighten the dreary expression on Kiba's face.

"Oh, me too Gaara!" he exclaimed as he embraced the other teen. Gaara would have normally shoved him off, but for just that moment, he decided to return the warmth offered by a hug.


	2. A trip

Well, let's see what happens in this chapter.. maybe a talk? Maybe some food? Who knows……………. What? You think I know? How would I know? Do I look like I wrote it?????????

**Chapter 2**

The big blue and white bus that read, "KPT, Konoha Public Transit" pulled up next to the two boys. It opened its doors and they stepped on board, depositing 35 cents as they each boarded. There was not another soul on the bus, with the exception of the driver, so Kiba and Gaara migrated to the back. Gaara was listening to his music.

"So what are you listening to anyway?" Kiba asked. Gaara looked annoyed.

"Listen for yourself."

Kiba ignored Gaara's usual attitude and unplugged one of the earbuds in Gaara's ears. It was Evanescence.

"Ooh! I love this song!" Kiba exclaimed.

"Shut up you dumbass. Do you want us to get kicked off the bus?"

Kiba was silent. The bus roared as it worked it's way up a large hill and Kiba suddenly looked ecstatic.

"Yay! We're almost there Gaara." The big red and white building with a sign that said "Friendly's" was in sight down the road. Kiba reached his hand up to pull the cord and signal to the driver to stop. The bus pulled to a halt when the driver heard the ding of the bell, and the doors sprang open. Gaara and Kiba stepped out onto soft grass. They were in the suburbs of Konoha, where medium sized houses with large, green yards surrounded them.

"Don't worry Gaara," Kiba said after a moment.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill.

"I'll pay. Just keep it under ten dollars, k?"

"Whatever," Gaara unenthusiastically replied.

They walked inside the restaurant, and sat down at a table next to the window. Kiba pushed the glass ashtray aside and picked up a menu. Gaara did the same as he stored away his iPod in his pants pocket.

"Ooh!" Kiba screamed. "They have a new chipotle chicken sandwich! And it's only $5.99. I can get that and a drink. What are you going to get Gaara?"

"I'm not even really hungry. Why did we come here anyway? Didn't you have breakfast this morning?"

"Yeah, but I'm still hungry. "

"You know, I'm surprised you're not a total fat-ass by now, the way you eat."

"So if you're not hungry, then can I have your ten"

"Go for it."

Kiba was about ready to burst a major artery at this news.

"Yay!" he shouted.

"Dumbass! Knock off your fucking screaming shit already!" Gaara shot back.

"So, you boys ready to order?" a woman's southern voice asked. They both looked up to see a blonde, I – like – to – sleep – with – every – guy – I – meet woman standing in front of their table holding a note pad.

"Uh…" Gaara muttered as his face turned maroon to match his hair. After saying every swear word he could think of in front of this waitress, he was a little embarrassed.

"I'm not going to have anything," he continued as he regained his composure.

"Well, then I'll have your chipotle chicken sandwich, two orders of fries, an extra large coke, and two hot fudge sundaes for dessert," Kiba finally piped up.

"Ok," the waitress said as she jotted down the order.

"Alright, your food should be ready in about 5-10 minutes, ok sweetheart?"

"Sounds good!" Kiba replied. She walked away, flashing her two basketballs for an ass being hugged by a 1-inch denim skirt.

"What a whore," Gaara chimed in.

"Do you ever not swear?" Kiba asked with an astute expression. Gaara disregarded this comment and turned to stare out the window.

"So anyway," Kiba said after a few minutes, "I had to sit between Shikamaru and Sasuke this morning in first period."

"So what?" Gaara asked acrimoniously. "Do you like him or something?"

"Who, Sasuke?" Kiba inquired.

"That Goth – ass – emo – bitch? No! I meant Shikamaru." Kiba returned to the introverted personality he had before.

"How did you know?" he said.

"It's kind of obvious. I mean, why else would you bring that up all of a sudden?"

Kiba remained silent for about ten seconds, until a fun thought entered his head.

"Hey, didn't you say you liked Sasuke at one point?" he teased. Gaara looked pissed now.

"Hell no! I swear I was drunk or something when I said that."

"But you don't drink."

"Exactly"

The smell of heavy perfume and thousand-calorie food suddenly exploded in their noses.

"Food's ready, y'all," their waitress said.


	3. Dodgeball

Chapter 3 

Kiba slumped in his seat as he let out an enormous sigh of relief.

"Ahhhh…." He said.

"Wow," said Gaara, "Where the hell do you put it all?"

Kiba's stomach was bulging with food, and small gurgles could be heard from his intestines. The table was littered with dirty plates, and the tray that carried their food held a small slip of paper, which Gaara picked up to read.

"The total comes to $19.59. You just barely have enough," he said. Kiba could hardly move, but just enough to elicit a twenty-dollar bill from his pocket, which he set on the tray with the receipt. Gaara turned his wrist to look at his stolen watch.

"It's 10:21, so if we hurry our asses, we can catch the bus, and make it back right before fifth period."

Kiba struggled to lift his body from the red, leather seat, but it seemed as though his body had acquired an extra 30 pounds in the last half of an hour. They both stood up and walked out, with Kiba slightly lagging behind. They scurried over to the bus stop that was right outside the restaurant, and sat down as Kiba let out an inscrutable groan.

"You gonna live Kiba?" Gaara asked. Kiba gave him a deathly stare for a moment, and then turned his attention to Akamaru who was taking a small bath. He too had eaten a lot of the food Kiba had ordered. Gaara again reached into his pocket for his iPod, and pulled it out to listen to music. It was a shuffle, and he couldn't see what song was playing, but he loved it anyway as he had received it as a gift from his sister, Temari, for his birthday. He just sat and skipped through songs.

Kiba sat beside him on the bench, looking up at sky and watching clouds scoot by. Cars whizzed past them unnoticed. They could have missed the bus, had Kiba not looked down right as it was pounding down the street that lay in front of them.

The bus screeched to a halt in front of the two boys, indicating that it needed new brakes. Gaara and Kiba thought nothing of it as they boarded and again dropped 35 cents each into the receptacle for coins.

This time on the bus there sat an older woman with what looked like shopping bags on her arms. She had a bandana wrapped around her head and wore a wool jacket, even though it was a very warm day. She also had on her arm a pink handbag that looked overstuffed. She was sitting in the back where Gaara and Kiba were headed. They sat opposite the old woman. She looked up at them and a concerned look crossed her face.

"Shouldn't you boys be in school right now?" she asked them. Kiba pursed his lips as he tried to come up with a false response. Just as he was about to say something, Gaara spoke.

"We got the day off," he lied.

"There's some problem with the bathrooms, and water was overflowing from them. It was a huge mess."

The lies just poured out of his mouth. He was so sure of what he was saying, or rather, what he was making up. Kiba wasn't sure whether it was good or bad that Gaara could just blurt out lies without even having to think about it.

"Oh, my. How awful!" the woman said.

Kiba stared at Gaara for a few moments he finally whispered quietly,

"Good one."

Gaara did not make any sort of reaction to this, but Kiba knew he heard him. Kiba turned and stared at the scenery flying by and felt bad about lying to that woman and skipping school. Gaara didn't care as much as Kiba did though. The bus stopped and let the woman off with her bags trailing behind her. The doors closed once she was off and the bus roared to life as it sped down the road in the direction of the park

The bus made its stop at the park bus stop, and the two friends exited. Gaara peered down at his watch, which now read 10:39. He told the time to Kiba, who nearly had a heart attack.

"Ah!" he screamed, "C'mon Gaara, let's go!" He took hold of Gaara's wrist and yanked him away, almost giving him whiplash. They set off at a jog toward the woods and to their ultimate destination, the high school.

Single trees sped by as they sprinted across the field and near the playground. Akamaru was now wide-awake as he was bouncing violently up and down in Kiba's hood. They now entered the forest, and their sneakers beat the dirt path as they ran. They could just barely see the school over the tops of the trees. Eventually the trees around them disappeared and the school showed itself to them.

Still jogging, but at a slower pace now, they made their way across the hot, black pavement of the school's parking lot. They hurried to the large front doors of the school, but now they seemed very tired, so they walked the next 50 feet.

As soon as they entered the building, the bell rang. Students scurried into the halls and Gaara and Kiba blended into the crowd. They went their separate ways without saying a single word: Gaara to Biology with Iruka-sensei, and Kiba to Physical Education with Anko-sensei.

The gym at Konoha High was a large one. In it rested a basketball court, volleyball court, weight lifting room, and indoor swimming pool. When Kiba got there, he changed into his gym shorts and began to run his 5 required warm-up laps around the basketball court.

While he was running, his gaze drifted to Shikamaru again. Shikamaru had changed into his gym shorts, but was simply walking around gym, rather than jogging which is what he was supposed to do.

Again, Kiba couldn't help staring at him. He thought Shikamaru looked really cute in his gym shorts, and wondered why he never noticed it before. After all, it's not like he wasn't bi before today.

Suddenly a whistle blew, and the students running around the gym stopped and walked over to where Anko-sensei was standing.

"Alright kids, listen up!" Anko announced.

"Today we're going to do something different than what we had planned on."

Kiba had a mini-stroke. The entire reason he and Gaara had rushed back to school was so that Kiba could play floor hockey, his favorite sport.

"Instead," Anko continued, "We're going to play a little game of dodgeball." She then began to explain the rules. The words just drifted through Kiba's head as he stared at Shikamaru.

"Oh, and I have one more word of advice," Anko went on as Kiba finally paid attention.

"Just don't die!" she exclaimed.

"Now I want all of you to form a line, and count off by 2s."

With that, the students all arranged themselves into a single file line. They began to count off with Temari at the end.

"1! 2! 1! 2!…"

Shikamaru was two people down in the line from Kiba. Just as Kiba noticed this, Anko finally made it to him.

"1! He shouted as Anko pointed. A few seconds later-

"2," Shikamaru barely spoke.

_Damn,_ Kiba thought to himself. He wanted to be on the same team for dodgeball as Shikamaru.

"Alright! 1s down there," Anko said as she pointed to one end of the gym, "and 2s down there!" she said as she pointed to the opposite end.

Under Anko's order, everyone made their way to their separate ends of the gym, while Anko set cones down in the middle to separate the two teams. She also set dodgeballs along the dividing line so that when the game started, kids could run and snatch them at their own risk.

A few seconds later, the screech of the whistle blared, and some of the kids, including Temari, Kiba, and "Rock" Lee dashed forward to retrieve a dodgeball. Kiba was unsuccessful, and just barely missed having a ball meet with his face.

The balls were being thrown around madly as Kiba once again moved forward daringly, to once again attempt a retrieval mission of a ball.

Bingo! He snatched one near the front, and quickly returned to his safer location away from the divider.

Bam! Smack! Kiba's teammates were dropping like flies all around him as dodgeballs slammed into them. Kiba knew he had to get in there, so he turned his attention to Lee, who was preoccupied with trying to hit another student.

Kiba whipped the ball out of his hand in Lee's direction. Lee, however, saw it coming with his peripheral vision and ducked just in time. The ball whizzed past Lee, but kept going on the path it was on until-

WHACK!


	4. Going for it All

So, something big happens in this chapter. Oh and, btw; As for an explination for kiba's crushiness, there really isn't one. It's just one of those crushes that u can't really explain, u know? Kiba thinks shika's cute, and he first noticed it, when he saw how smart shika is as well. So anyway, enjoy chap 4!

Chapter 4 

The ball Kiba had let loose collided with Shikamaru's head. He hadn't been paying attention, so the force of the ball knocked him down on the hard gym floor. At the sight of this, Anko immediately blew her whistle to stop the game temporarily.

"Time out! Hold your fire!" she cried as she and almost half of the class, including Kiba, raced over to the spot where Shikamaru lay on the floor nearly unconscious. Kiba pushed his way through the crowd and bent over the boy.

"Oh my God! Shikamaru, are you all right?" he asked frantically.

Shikamaru was just starting to sit up a little. He looked dazed and confused.

"I'm SO sorry!" Kiba apologized. He held out his hand to help the fallen boy.

"I'm all right I guess," Shikamaru replied as he go to his feet.

"So you think you'll be able to play the game more?" Anko questioned.

_Shit, _Shikamaru thought.

"Actually," he said putting his hand on his head, "I do have a bit of a headache. Could I go to the nurse?"

Oddly enough, Anko seemed to believe this blatantly obvious fake excuse to leave gym class.

"Fine. Go ahead," she said. Kiba looked fidgety now, and he suddenly spoke up.

"Um, maybe I should go with him. You know, to make sure he's all right." Now at this point, one could think Anko is the most gullible teacher on the face of the planet.

"Ok," she said, "Go on you two."

So with that, they both exited the gymnasium and treaded the smooth hallway to the nurse's office. They walked together with their footsteps in-synch, without saying a single word. The silence bothered Kiba, so he decided to make small talk.

"So, let me guess, you don't really have a headache, do you?"

"Of course not," Shikamaru replied.

"By the way, why did you come too?" Kiba himself didn't really know the answer. After a minute of thinking about it, he gave an answer, although it wasn't the truth.

"I just wanted to get out of gym too, I guess."

"Yeah, gym's such a drag," Shikamaru said.

They continued to walk the halls of Konoha High School for about five minutes more. By this time, Kiba had realized that they weren't going to the nurse's office at all. He didn't care though. He was enjoying this silent walk with Shikamaru.

"We should probably get back in a few minutes, because the bell is gonna ring soon," Kiba said. Shika sighed at this because he realized it was true.

"Alright, let's turn around and go back then, " he said.

So they then reversed their direction to return to the gym. They headed through the locker room entrance so they could change into their normal clothes.

"Good thing lunch is next," Kiba said, "I'm starving."

Shikamaru didn't acknowledge this as he pulled down his shorts and took off his shoes to reveal his bare skin to the cold air and cold tile floor of the locker room. Kiba couldn't help staring yet again. He finished changing before Shikamaru and left the way he came in.

"Well, see you later," he said as he left. He was no more than ten feet out of the locker room when the bell for lunch rang, and students began to crowd the large hallways yet again. Kiba just walked along through the mass of people thinking only about the boy whom he nearly gave a concussion to.

It was the end of the day at Konoha High, and teenagers could be seen leaving on the bright yellow school buses or walking to there nearby homes.

As the front steps of the school filled with students, Kiba was leaving as well while talking to Akamaru. He couldn't really understand what Akamaru said when he barked, but he could understand what he meant, so he was able to have almost full-fledged conversations.

He walked at a normal pace down the front steps of the building toward the S-curve road that connects the school to the main road. Alongside it lay a paved walk for students.

Kiba strolled down the path with his hand on the right strap of his backpack, and stared up momentarily at the light, airy clouds drifting by. When he returned his gaze to the path in front of him, his eyes fell on a certain someone up ahead.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" he called out as his feet set off at a jog toward Shikamaru.

"What's up man?" he said when he caught up with Shikamaru.

"Not much," Shikamaru said.

"Hey, sorry again about the dodgeball incident earlier," Kiba continued.

"Eh, whatever," said Shikamaru.

They continued along the sidewalk to their homes, which were about a mile further. Again, they did not speak much at all during their walk together. Kiba was dying inside. He was really in love with Shikamaru, and wanted to tell him so. He swallowed the lump in his throat and worked up the courage to ask Shikamaru a very serious question.

"Will you go out with me?" he blurted out abruptly. The words were almost completely inscrutable as they all blended together, but Shikamaru was able to comprehend what they were.

He stopped walking to turn and look at Kiba, whose face was now a deep maroon color. He looked pensive for a moment, but then he came up with an answer.

"Sure, why not," he said. Kiba swelled with joy and threw his arms around Shikamaru. The force of it almost knocked Shikamaru into the busy street.

"Do you, maybe wanna…hold hands?" Kiba asked him shyly.

Shikamaru looked at him for a moment, and without saying anything at all, extended his hand to the young teen who, in turn, held onto it as they walked home together.


	5. Danger in the Shadows

This chapter is kinda random. It's got some action, so be prepared. And it also gives the two a bit of personal history, and a taste of their home lives.

**Chapter 5**

It was around ten o'clock that night, and Kiba was sitting alone in his room. His room had an oriental look to it. In one corner of the room sat a wooden vase with bamboo sticks and tall grass stuffed into it. In front that was a display of Kiba's name written in Katakana, or the Japanese alphabet. On the wall above his television set, there hung a poster with the image of the Chinese yin-yang symbol, accompanied by a white dragon on one side, and a white tiger on the other, with both baring their teeth at each other. On the adjacent wall, there were several framed still shots of various Japanese anime movies.

Kiba at this time was at his laptop, instant messaging Shikamaru. Kiba's screen name was dogbiscuit88, while Shikamaru's was xshadowloverx.

**Dogbiscuit88-** Well, I really enjoyed our walk today. Did u?

**Xshadowloverx-** Yeah. Ur pretty cute.

**Dogbiscuit88- **It was only recently that I started liking you. I'm lucky that ur bi 2, otherwise that woulda ended up in disaster.

**Xshadowloverx- **Well, it's not like I would hate u or think ur creepy or sumthin.

**Dogbiscuit88-** That's good, lol.

Shouting could be heard a few rooms away at Kiba's apartment building. His parents were arguing as they did many nights a week when his father would come home late and sometimes intoxicated.

**Dogbiscuit88- **God, I hate it here. All my parents do anymore is fight.

Xshadowloverx- At least ur parents r there. Mine don't give a crap about me. They're now out of town for a few days. They hired a baby-sitter (like I need 1), but she nvr showed . Dogbiscuit88- I wish I could b there. 

**Xshadowloverx- **Do u wanna come over? We only live like half a mile apart.

**Dogbiscuit88- **Well, I dunno. If I snuck out, my parents prolly wouldn't notice. They're fighting like always. I guess it would b ok.

**Xshadowloverx- **cool. Just hit the buzzer that says "Nara"

**Dogbiscuit88- **alright. C u in 10!

**Xshadowloverx- **ttyl

Kiba signed off of his instant messenger and shut down his computer. He glanced briefly at Akamaru who was curled up in a ball in his dog-sized bed. Kiba decided not to wake him to come along as well, so Kiba walked over to his bed and picked up his hoodie off of the floor. He slipped it on one arm at a time, and zipped it up.

With the utmost care, he tiptoed gingerly over to his window. He then made his way outside onto the fire escape, and shut the window almost all the way, leaving an inch open to get back inside.

For the warm spring day that Konoha had received, it was a cool, brisk night. Kiba strolled down the sidewalk passing three-story brick buildings. There were signs in all the windows of the stores, and the streetlights, and neon signs that were everywhere were giving off a dazzling light show. This was downtown Konoha.

On their walk together, Shikamaru had stopped at his house first, so Kiba knew where it was. It was only approximately a block or two further. All he would have to do now is pass a dark alley up ahead. He kept walking down the stone path, completely unaware of what lie ahead.

He reached the alleyway, and tried to hurry past, but as soon as his feet began to pick up speed, Kiba was pulled with a brute force into the alley. The one who had exerted the force was a young gang member. He was wearing a black, leather jacket and blue jeans that looked too small for him. His greasy black hair was a mess, and his eyes were stone-cold gray. The thug, who looked to be about twenty years old, had grabbed Kiba and thrown him into nearby metal garbage cans.

"Hey, punk," he called out to Kiba.

Kiba moaned in pain, and could barely move as he lay among the trash. His nose twitched slightly at the stagnant stench of alcohol hanging in the air. Several other thugs gathered around the one that had grabbed Kiba. Apparently, this one was their leader.

"So, you got any money, kid?" the punk asked Kiba.

Kiba did not respond, but was able to get to his feet now.

"You shouldn't be out late at night." The punk leader continued. The others all chuckled.

"Someone might try to hurt you," he said.

Kiba was angry by now, so he threw a punch at the gang leader, who dodged it, and shoved his own fist hard into Kiba's stomach, knocking him backward again. The punk however, wasn't finished, as he sent his fists flying into Kiba's cheek, and his nose causing it to bleed.

By now, Kiba was laying against the trashcans again, with his nose bleeding profusely.

"That's what happens when you mess with the big boys," the punk said as he stiffened the collar on his jacket with an evil smile and laugh.

Kiba just laid there now, barely holding himself upright, when a shout echoed through the alley.

"Hey!" the voice said.

"Leave him alone!" The voice sounded oddly familiar.

Kiba watched as the thugs turned in the direction of the shouts. He couldn't make out who it was though, as it was dark, and the gang was in his line of sight.

"Oh yeah, and what're you going to do about it?" the main punk asked. The group shifted slightly, and Kiba caught a glimpse of his savior. He looked closer, and the figure standing down the alleyway, was none other than his new boyfriend, Shikamaru.

"You leave Kiba alone, or I'll take you down," Shikamaru said.

The gang members all gave him an incredulous look.

"Yeah, right," one of them said, "A little shrimp like you is gonna take us on?"

Their leader stepped forward.

"Just try to beat me kid. If you win, I'll let your little friend go."

"That sounds fine with me," said Shikamaru, cracking his knuckles.

The gang leader moved toward Shikamaru and got himself into a fighting pose with his fists raised. Shikamaru just stood there with his hands at his sides.

_This guy's a joke, _he thought to himself. The gang leader's fist now went flying in Shikamaru's direction. He still, just stood in his original position. He only stared at the punk, whose fist was now a foot away from Shikamaru's face.

Just as it was about to slam into Shikamaru's face, he veered to the left and the punk went flying past. As if the guy was moving in slow motion, Shikamaru was able to clench the clothes on the punk's back, pick him up with ease, and toss him like a piece of garbage into a nearby brick wall. The thug got to his feet, shaking and holding his head. He realized he was no match for Shikamaru, and fled the alley, with his flunkies following close by.

"Uh, c'mon guys, let's get outta here!" he shouted.

"What a fucking coward," Shikamaru said under his breath. He turned around, and suddenly remembered that Kiba was lying against the trash.

"Kiba!" he called out to the fallen boy. Kiba was barely able to move, but managed to at least sit up. He attempted to clear the blood coming from his nose with the sleeve on his hoodie.

"Kiba, I'm coming!" Shikamaru yelled out again, as he sprinted over to Kiba. He hoped to God that Kiba wasn't too seriously injured.

"Kiba, I'm so sorry!" Shikamaru pleaded.

"Why?" Kiba asked, "It's not your fault."

Shikamaru avoided eye contact.

"Well, I forgot to warn you how dangerous this part of town gets at night."

Kiba gave him a funny look, but it could have been because he was in so much pain at the time.

"Even so Shikamaru, you couldn't have stopped it from happening. By the way, how were you able to do that back there?"

"Well, I took karate lessons when I was five, and kept them going until now. Anyway, here, let me help you up this time," he said as he stretched his arm out to Kiba. He pulled the boy up with such an impressive force, that Kiba kept going after he was already standing. With that, their lips met each other and the two began to kiss. It was slow at first, but as they continued to make love under the blue beams of moonlight, their rhythm grew faster. They then began to caress and stroke each other as they shared their first kiss, stopping only briefly for gasps of air.

* * *

Well, I'm gonna end it here for now I'm thinking of continuing, so let me know if I should. I've already got like three paragraphs of chapter 6 written so………….

REVIEWREVIEW………………………….please?


	6. Rush Home!

Well, try and enjoy this chapter. It's only about 700 words. It explains the night's events, and has some hints of wouldn't you like to know rather than simply reading it.

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**Chapter 6**

Shikamaru and Kiba slept in the next morning, as it was a Saturday. Kiba was first to rise. He slowly opened his eyelids and was staring into bright sunlight streaking through a nearby window. For a moment, he just lay there enjoying the radiant warmth of the sunbeams. Then, as though he was smacked in the face with a fly swatter, he bolted upright in the bed he was laying in.

For a second, he examined his surroundings, and didn't have the slightest idea as to his whereabouts. Then he turned his head to the right, and beneath cream colored sheets lay a half-naked Shikamaru.

_Last night, _he thought to himself, _…last night, what happened? _He cleared his mind to try and recall the night's events. Suddenly his mind flooded with images. The two of them had walked together to Shikamaru's apartment. Once there, Kiba cleaned himself up, as his nose was still covered with dried blood. Shikamaru came in the room, and began to help him. Kiba was just nearly clean when he reached over the sink to retrieve a tissue. Simultaneously, Shikamaru reached over to the opposite end of the sink and over Kiba's arm, bringing their faces barely an inch apart. They had looked up into each other's eyes, and slowly closed in on each other. Their kissing then led them into Shikamaru's bed, where they began something much more passionate.

Kiba's eyes widened as he came to the realization of what really happened. He looked over at the sleeping Shikamaru again with a smile on his face. Shikamaru turned over in his sleep with a groan.

Kiba now turned to the dormant alarm clock resting on a nearby bedside table. It read 6:04 am. He turned back over to Shikamaru in a panic, and gave him a small nudge.

"Hey Shikamaru, wake up,"

Shikamaru let out another groan, but this time, he turned over to face Kiba.

"Hn?" he asked, apparently not even recognizing whom was sitting next to him.

"Shikamaru, I have to get home."

He gave another groan and sat up a little.

"Ugh, what time is it?" he asked rubbing his eyes.

"It's a little past 6," Kiba replied.

"Oh fuck, really?" Shikamaru said as he too sat up in bed as Kiba had done.

"Hurry then, Go! Get home!" he yelled at Kiba.

With that Kiba rushed out of the room, pulling on his clothes as he hopped on one foot down the hallway of the apartment, half-naked. As he hopped, he passed by an odd old woman with a large overcoat, and a pink, overstuffed handbag on her arm and she looked familiar. She just stared, wide-eyed as he went by.

He burst out of the front door of the building into the moist morning air, and began his sprint home. There were many cars on the road now, and most of the drivers watched as the kid with bed-head hair, and messy clothes shot by their cars on the side of the street.

Kiba's mind was out of control now. So many different thoughts took residence in his head.

_Oh God, my parents are going to murder me, _he thought.

Then his thoughts strayed back to the young Shikamaru that only minutes ago, he had woken up in bed next to.

_Did we really do that? Or was it a dream? _The entirety of the previous night could have potentially been nothing more than a dream. But then reality struck.

_It wasn't a dream._

Kiba continued down the street at a slower pace now and his home was within range. He could see the ladder that led to the fire escape was still down, just as he had left it. He advanced to the fire escape, and threw his full body weight onto the ladder, climbing it as swiftly as he could.

He reached his floor and delicately opened his window that he left slightly ajar. He moved in a furtive manner inside and despite his attempt to be silent, he made a loud thud as he hit the floor.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps quickly approaching his room, so he rapidly closed his window, and slithered into bed as his door creaked open a second later.

"Kiba-sama," a woman's voice said, "are you awake?"

Kiba turned over in bed.

"Yeah mom," he said with a fake, groggy tone, "I was just getting some water."

"Alright honey," she said closing the door.

A wave of relief swept over Kiba as he came to realize that his parents did not notice his absence. He sighed and crawled out of bed. He straddled over to Akamaru who was still asleep in his dog bed. Kiba started to stroke him as he thought about last night, with a small grin on his face.

* * *

give me an "R"! give me a "&"! Give me another "R"! what does that mean? REVIEW!...please? 


	7. The First Date

Here's chapter 7!! Yay, after this there's just one more. And btw, would like to point out that in the last chapter, It was supposed to be that they sleep in until 8:00, but I don't really know what happened.

**Chapter 7**

It was the first Monday following that eventful weekend. Kiba awoke at 6:30 to his alarm clock radio and he slammed a hand down on the sedulous noisemaker. He got himself up out of bed with a yawn and a stretch, and began his daily morning ritual.

This morning, however, was different. Kiba was haunted by an emotional plague. He had not spoken to Shikamaru the rest of the weekend and was worried that what they had done together might have ruined their relationship. He pondered this all morning as he put on his clothes and grabbed his backpack containing Akamaru.

"I'm headed to school Mom!" he shouted on his way out. He cleared the flights of stairs of the apartment building in about a minute. Then he shut the door behind him as he went outside, and looked down on the sidewalk below the steps. Right there was Shikamaru, standing akimbo. Kiba just stared in wonder at him, until Shikamaru said something to break the silence.

"So, you coming?"

Kiba snapped out of the trance-like state he was in.

"Uh, yeah definitely!"

He practically leaped down the steps of the apartment building to where Shikamaru was standing. Shikamaru gave him an odd look, and then they both started walking together to school. About two minutes into their walk, Kiba made a motion with his hand, which Shikamaru understood as, "Do you want to hold my hand?" So, they walked the remainder of the way to school, grasping each other's hand in their own.

At last, after about 15 minutes, they reached the school, and still holding hands, they entered the building. The reactions they received were no less than what they had expected. Their annoying class clown friend, Naruto, just dropped his jaw and pointed, as he was completely speechless. Shikamaru's ex-girlfriend, Ino, had a similar reaction.

"What the fuck?!" she screamed as she too pointed.

"My ex is a fucking fruit basket?!"

She stared at them with utter disbelief as they walked down the hall together, passing her by.

_This is going to send my reputation to hell in a hand basket if I don't do something, _Ino thought.

Then the expression on her face changed from horror and disgust, into a malicious, and almost evil look.

* * *

The bell signaling the end of first period sounded through the school, and the students from Kakashi-sensei's first period English class all exited the room. As Kiba left, he deposited several folded up pieces of paper into a nearby trashcan. He and Shikamaru had been passing notes the entire period, and not paying any attention to the class.

They both left the room together and entered the dense hallway, nearly being knocked off their feet by people rushing past them. They were about to take their separate paths, when Shikamaru stopped Kiba by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Uh, hey," he said somewhat shyly, "do you want to hang out at the mall later or something? I know it's such a drag, but anyway, do you?"

Kiba was unprepared for this, but he could think of at least one thing to say.

"Yes! Absolutely! How about 6 o'clock I meet you at your house? Then we can bus ourselves there."

"Yeah," Shikamaru said, "that doesn't sound too troublesome."

So with those plans for the night fresh in their minds, they set off to their classes.

* * *

There was only one mall in all of Konoha. It was located in the area of town known to the locals as "Southside". Therefore, the mall was so dubbed the Konoha Southside Mall.

The bus that Shikamaru and Kiba had taken dropped them off at the main entrance to the mall. The two stepped off onto the hard pavement, and stepped inside. Immediately, they were both stuck with a blast of cool air from an air-conditioning duct directly above them.

Following the blast of cool air was a tempting fragrance of all the restaurants in the mall, combining in their noses to form a hunger driving smell. Directly on their left was a Subway restaurant, and on their right was an Applebee's restaurant.

They walked on through and Kiba spotted a clothing store down the right wing of the mall.

"Hey let's go there!" he said, pointing to the store, which was called "Label Shopper".

They entered the store and browsed through a sea of shirts and jeans. The walls of the store were painted white, so it had a dreary feel to it. This didn't bother the two boys though, as they looked at clothes for each other. Somehow, as they browsed, they found themselves in the bra section of the store. Kiba spotted a lacey, pink bra and held it up to Shikamaru's chest.

"Hey, this would look great on you," Kiba teased in a sadistic tone. Shikamaru was about ready to smack him.

"Get that thing away from me," he said, "I'm not some sort of girl."

Kiba slowly pulled it away with a large grin on his face and his eyes closed tight. He just stood there a moment, but then for no apparent reason, he felt like he wanted to kiss Shikamaru. However, he couldn't do it right there, so he threw the garment on the floor, and held on to where his bladder would be.

"Ooh," he said, "nature's calling. C'mon!"

He snatched Shikamaru's wrist and pulled him along to the nearest restroom.

"What the hell?" Shikamaru pleaded as he was nearly dragged, "why am I coming?"

"Just cuz," Kiba answered blankly.

The two went off the restroom down a white, windowless corridor at the far end of the mall. The absence of natural light gave the place an eerie feel.

Now that they had reached the end, Kiba grabbed both of Shikamaru's shoulders and pinned him against the brick wall. Shikamaru was completely stunned.

"Kiss me," Kiba begged. It was as if his personality had left his body entirely and had been replaced by a sex hungry monster.

"Wha?" Shikamaru uttered incoherently.

"Kiss me," Kiba repeated. Shikamaru obliged and leaned in for a kiss.

The two of them kissed each other, with Kiba's head working it's way down Shikamaru's body. He unbuttoned the shirt Shikamaru was wearing and put his head and lips on Shikamaru's breastbone. There, he left his mark on Shikamaru, who closed his eyes, and leaned his head back. They put their hands on each other's head now, and their tongues entered each other's mouth.


	8. Love Vanishes

Well, here's the final chapter. Kiba may seem a little bipolar in one part, so beware of that. And Gaara may seem a little OOC, but I made it so that he and Kiba sort of switch personalities as the story progresses. So anyway, please R&R, and enjoy!

**Chapter 8**

The next week had arrived following Kiba and Shikamaru's date on Monday. Kiba had thought about it all week and he thought about it as he lay in his bed on Sunday night. It was about 8:00 at night and he lay flat on his back staring up at the ceiling. Again, he was worried about how his relationship with Shikamaru was going. As if a repeat of the previous weekend, the two had not spoken to each other for much, or rather, all of the last week. Kiba would pass Shikamaru in the hall and call his name, but receive no answer.

_Was it something I did? _Kiba thought as he lay in silence. His room was lit by a small lamp on the table that also held his television. It gave off a warm and nostalgic glow and made his room feel very comfortable. His window was open, and a cool breeze drifted in, accompanied by the whistle of a car engine as it sped by outside and the occasional honk of a car horn.

_Maybe Gaara can give me some advice._

Kiba liked this idea and turned over in bed to reach for his cell phone resting on his nightstand. Right as he was about to grab it though, it started to vibrate and dance all over the dresser. Someone was calling.

He picked it up and flipped it open to see that his friend Gaara was calling him. It seemed like a very odd coincidence, but Kiba hit the answer key anyway.

"Hello?" he said into the small device.

"What up Kiba?" Gaara asked him. His voice seemed oddly brighter than usual.

"Well," Kiba said, "I was actually just about to call you."

"Weird," said Gaara, "So anyway, I was just wondering how things with you and Shikamaru were going."

Kiba was dumbfounded.

"I was going to talk to you about that actually! I don't think things are going well for Shikamaru and I. We haven't spoken all week, and I wonder if maybe he hates me or something."

Gaara turned on his sarcastic tone.

"I don't see how anyone could hate _you,_" he jeered. Kiba was confused.

"Wait," he said, "was that a serious remark, or were or were you mocking me?"

"I'd say about 30 serious, 70 mock," Gaara replied as he made a motion with his hands to simulate balancing two objects.

"But seriously," he continued, "Go over there right now and talk to him. I'm sure your parents wouldn't mind, or care really."

Kiba was silent for a moment while he thought about it.

"Yeah, sure," he said, "alright, well I'll talk to you later man."

"Yeah, later!" Gaara replied.

Kiba hung up the phone and set it back down on the table. He leapt up off of the bed and left his room. Unfortunately, his parents were fighting once again out in the living room of their apartment.

"Where is the remote?!" his father shouted at his mother.

"The same place as your career! IN THE TOILET!!!" his mother shot back. Kiba barely spoke up over their shouts.

"Hey mom, can I go over to Shikamaru's house?" he asked meekly.

"Fine honey," she said with a wave of her hand, and not even turning her head to look at him.

"You know," she continued, "You need to be setting a better example for Kiba!" Her words trailed off as he slipped out the door.

* * *

This night was rather warm. Kiba wasn't wearing his usual gray hoody, but was simply a tee-shirt. He approached the door to Shikamaru's apartment, and he pressed the buzzer labeled "Nara." A small buzz broke the silence of the night air up above Kiba's head. He waited, but there was no answer. 

_Hn, _Kiba thought, _I wonder where he is._

All of a sudden, a thud shot out of the alley next to Shikamaru's apartment building. Following that were some very strange noises. Kiba wondered what was happening, so he carefully tip-toed down the steps of the building and quietly stepped over to the alley. He barely glanced around the corner, and what he saw shocked and horrified him.

Down the alley was Shikamaru being pinned to the brick wall by Ino. She had her lips all over Shikamaru and it appeared as though he was not even attempting to break away.

He seems to be… 

Kiba's eyes widened.

… _enjoying it._

Now anger was consuming his thoughts and clouding his judgement making him irrational. He spun around the corner of the wall. Shikamaru, still pinned to the wall turned to look at him. When he had stopped kissing Ino, she stopped seducing him to look as well. Kiba was standing there breathing heavily with his finger pointed at the two of them.

"What in the hell is this?!" Kiba shouted at them. They both made no sound.

"Shikamaru," he said as his eyes now began to get wet, "why are you, what…" his voice trailed away as he could not find the right words to say. Ino and Shikamaru still just stared for another moment.

Then Ino grabbed Shikamaru's wrist and began to pull him out of the alley. Kiba watched silently as they ran off together down the street. Shikamaru didn't look back once.

Tears now streamed down Kiba's face and he dropped to his knees. He hid his face in his hands and tears poured out of his eyes. The tears collected on the ground in front of him and reflected the white light of the moon as he sat there crying.

* * *

The next morning, the sky was painted a dull pewter as large rain clouds rolled by. Kiba got up that morning and lazily began his daily morning routine. He was very depressed and moved in a slow and bovine way around the apartment. He was still devastated from the night before. 

He left the apartment a half of an hour later with his head down. The long walk to school seemed to take even longer today. There was no one to hold his hand along the way, and no one to talk to. He just drifted down the street in a pool of self-pity. What made matters worse, was that it was now beginning to rain. It was a slow drizzle at first, but it then turned to a heavy downpour minutes later. Kiba didn't care though. He may not have even noticed. His own sorrow consumed him and separated him from the world around him.

He arrived at the school ten minutes later, still moping. He walked down the first hallway staring at the floor. He bumped into a few people as he walked on, but he didn't care. Suddenly, his friend, Gaara, began running up to him.

"Hey, Kiba!" he called out as he ran.

"Kiba, wazup?" he asked when he finally reached Kiba. Kiba said nothing and moved on, completely ignoring Gaara.

"Sooo," Gaara continued, "how did things go with Shikamaru last night?"

Kiba was just quiet for a moment.

"Something happened," he said, "but I don't really want to talk about it."

Gaara looked at him with his head cocked slightly.

"Uh, alright. Well see you later then!" he said as he ran off in the opposite direction. Kiba ignored him still.

_Last night was so horrible, _Kiba thought.

_I don't think we could even be friends after that. I should probably tell Gaara, though. I'll just tell him later. It'll just be between friends._

The bell rang and Kiba shuffled off to his first class.

* * *

The end of the long day had finally reared its head and the students at Konoha High were all on their way home. Kiba too was on his designated route home. He was still in a state similar to the morning's. His head was down, and his hands were in his pockets as he moved down the sidewalk to his home. Kiba's entire world was gone to him. He had absolutely no awareness of his surroundings. He didn't even watch as he crossed a busy street to his apartment. 

He was out in the middle of the road now and just about to make it to the other side when loud horns began to scream in his ear suddenly. He stopped in mid-walk and looked up to see his last vision on Earth. A semi-truck was only a foot from his face and still moving at full speed.

The time between Kiba's reaction and the collision was merely an instant, but to the young boy of 15, it seemed to last forever. He thought of everything in his life that made him happy, and then everything disappeared.

Everything was gone now: all sounds, all visions, and all life. Only a few faint words carried out into the eternal darkness Kiba was trapped in.

"K i b a…………………………" Shikamaru was screaming.

"I m s o r r y…………………"

"I l o v e y o u………………………"


End file.
